The present invention relates generally to bindings for sports equipment and, more particularly, to sport boots and bindings for releasable attachment to snow boards and the like.
The sport of snowboarding has been practiced for many years, and has grown in popularity in recent years, establishing itself as a popular winter activity rivaling downhill skiing. In snowboarding a rider stands with both feet atop a single board, and negotiates a gravity-propelled path down a snow-covered slope. Both of the rider""s feet are secured to the snowboard, and the rider controls speed and direction by shifting his or her weight and foot positions. A particularly important aspect of controlling the snowboard is rotating the snowboard about its longitudinal axis, thereby selecting which lateral edge of the snowboard engages the snow, the angle of engagement and the orientation of the snowboard with respect to the slope of the terrain.
In order to control the orientation of the snowboard, the rider wears boots that are firmly secured to the snowboard in an orientation that is generally transverse to the longitudinal axis of the snowboard. In this stance, the rider can raise the toe-side edge of the snowboard by leaning backward and rotating his/her feet, for example, and can rotate board within the plane of the board, and/or about the boards short axis, by appropriate foot movement. In order to accomplish precise control of the snowboard, the soles of the rider""s boots must therefore be firmly attached to the board. Mechanisms for releasable attaching snowboard boots to the snowboard are called snowboard bindings. Many binding mechanisms have been developed, generally categorized as either strap bindings (also called conventional bindings) wherein a pair of frames having straps for releasably securing the rider""s boots is attached to the board, and step-in bindings wherein cleat mechanisms are integrated into the sole of the snowboard boots and a complementary cleat-engagement mechanism is attached to the snowboard.
In strap bindings, the binding frame typically includes a flat base portion that receives the sole of the boot. The base portion attaches to the board, frequently in an adjustable manner such that the rider can select a particular angle between the boot axis and the board axis. Integral side walls extend upwardly from either side of the base portion, providing lateral support to the attached boot, and a high back portion extends vertically from the back. The high back portion is important particularly when the rider is using soft boots, as it enables the rider to raise the toe-side edge of the board by leaning backwardly against the high back portion. Typically, two pairs of straps are attached to the frame side walls, the straps being adapted to extend over the rider""s boots and adjustably interconnect, to secure the snowboard boots to the snowboard. The first pair of straps extends generally around the ankle portion of the boot, and the second pair extends generally over the toe portion of the boot.
A common problem encountered with conventional snowboard bindings is that as the rider mounts the snowboard by stepping onto the base portion of the frame, the straps can get in the way of the rider, sometimes becoming trapped behind or underneath the rider""s boots, requiring the rider to adjust his/her feet and attempt to pull the straps out and over the boots. This task can be particularly difficult and frustrating when the rider is re-mounting a snowboard in the field, for example, after dismounting the snowboard to traverse level portion of a run. In this case, the boots, straps, binding, and snowboard may be covered with snow, the rider is typically wearing gloves and bulky clothing, and the snowboard and rider may be situated on an inclined and/or slippery snowy field. Under these conditions, properly orienting and securing the binding straps can be particularly challenging.
In addition to the physical difficulties associated with properly mounting the snowboard, physical damage and undesirable wear and tear can be caused to the strap assembly. The straps, and particularly the clasping mechanism for securing the straps, can be damaged, for example, if the rider inadvertently steps on the straps or imposes sharp bends in the straps between the boot and the high back portion of the frame. Moreover, the process of pulling the straps (including the clasp mechanism) out from between the boot and the frame can result in unnecessary stresses and strains in the strap assembly.
The present invention is directed to a conventional, or strap-type, snowboard boot binding that facilitates easy mounting of the snowboard by the rider. The improved snowboard boot binding includes a high back frame for receiving a snowboard boot that is secured to the snowboard, and at least one hinged strap assembly, wherein the hinged strap assembly includes: (i) a first strap attached at one end to one side of the frame and the other end having a clasp mechanism, (ii) a second strap attached at one end to the other side of the frame and adapted to be adjustably engaged by the clasp mechanism, and (iii) a hinge mechanism attached to the at least one of the first strap and the second strap, the hinge permitting the attached strap to swing outwardly, away from the frame.
In an embodiment of the invention, the hinge mechanism includes a simple hinge wherein the hinged strap is connected to the frame by a hinge plate attached to the frame, a hinge arm attached to the strap, and a pivot pin pivotally connecting the hinge plate to the hinge arm.
In a second embodiment of the invention, the hinge mechanism includes an elastically deformable, V-shaped plate connecting the strap to the frame, wherein the V-shaped plate can be non-plastically deformed to a generally flat configuration for binding the snowboard boot to the snowboard.
In another embodiment of the invention, the hinge mechanism is provided with a biasing member, such as a coil spring, that urges the strap toward an open position, with the distal end of the strap urged away from the frame.
It is an aspect of the present invention that some or all of the straps used to bind the snowboard boot to the snowboard can be positioned away from the frame, thereby making it easier to mount the snowboard by reducing or eliminating the possibility that the rider will inadvertently step on, or otherwise trap the binding straps behind or under the snowboard boot.